New Cherokee Tribe Chief Wants An End To Turmoil

OTHER NEWS TO NOTE - SOUTH

July 26, 1999

TAHLEQUAH, Okla. - Chad Smith, newly elected chief of the Cherokee tribe, has called for an end to four years of political turmoil and charges of financial abuses in the second-most populous Native American nation. Smith, a 48-year-old lawyer, defeated incumbent Joe Byrd by an unexpectedly wide margin of 56 percent to 44 percent Saturday. Smith had trailed Byrd by 13 percentage points in last May's primary. ``This is the beginning of the process of healing,'' said Smith, who vowed to promote honest government, Cherokee culture and health care.